Gitano to Open Mexican Marketplace at New York Location
Gitano has come a long way from its humble beginnings as a small Mezcal bar on the beach in Tulum, Mexico, in 2013. Since then, the business has grown into a hospitality and lifestyle brand with locations in New York and Miami Beach.
And on Aug. 11, its founder and chief executive officer James Gardner will open Souk Gitano, a multibrand marketplace within its Gitano Garden of Love restaurant at 76 Varick Street in New York City. The 24,000-square-foot, 450-seat restaurant and bar opened in 2018 and features a modern Mexican menu cooked over an open fire, as well as the company’s signature Mezcal cocktails.
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Souk Gitano, whose head designer is Mali Reyes, will feature genderless and seasonless private label merchandise including T-shirts, linen and cotton separates, silk robes, jewelry, including signet rings and pendants, hats, leather bags, fragrance and candles. It will also include collaborations with a number of brands from Tulum, Mexico City and Guadalajara, Mexico, including Brizegno, Faye, EGR by EGR, Ossa, Erresie7e, The Pack, Out of Comfort, Lordag & Sondag and Xaman. The shop will also include “Gitano Pride” and “Gitano Parade” T-shirts, the latter of which was designed in partnership with Connie Girl, and 20 percent of the proceeds from its sale will support LGBTQ charities.
The assortment for Souk was curated by Luke Day, stylist and fashion director of British GQ, who has joined Grupo Gitano as fashion director. Grupo Gitano is the company’s corporate name.
“It’s a personal thrill for me to transfer my skills as an editor of a world-renowned fashion magazine to now curating a retail concept as part of the store,” Day said. “Being a Tulum-born concept, it felt integral that Souk Gitano supports and showcases local artisans and Mexico design talent, many of whom feel like family to us. Gitano has always given me a sense of belonging. As our family expands, we hope you’ll feel just as at home here.”
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The plan is to expand the Souk concept — which will also be available online — to the company’s other locations in the coming months.
In the future, Souk will be expanded to serve as “a retail experience beyond apparel and accessory shopping by way of one-of-a-kind objects, a rich books library, rare records and a hand-selected art collection,” the company said.
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